🍲 Iruka no Miso-ni (Dolphin Miso Stew)

The practice of dolphin fishing in Shizuoka Prefecture has been conducted primarily in the Izu region. The gulfs of the Izu Peninsula serve as migration routes for the dolphins, while the complex geography of the peninsula makes it a suitable location for the dolphin drive fishing method, whereby dolphins are herded and driven into a bay or beach using boats. Dolphin bones found at Jomon period archaeological sites, as well as records from medieval and early modern eras, indicate that dolphin fishing has been practiced since ancient times. Following the Meiji era, dolphins caught in Izu were sold throughout other areas within Shizuoka, as well as to outside prefectures such as Aichi, Gifu, and Yamanashi. Currently, the only organization that continues the tradition of dolphin drive fishing is the Ito Fisheries Cooperative (Ito City, Futo Port). However, due to the intensifying focus, both domestically and internationally, on protecting and conserving dolphin populations, as well as regulations limiting the quantities and types of species allowed to be caught, dolphin fishing has not been conducted since 2004. Nonetheless, drive fishing has been permitted since 2019 for the expressed purposes of capturing dolphins for captive breeding. “Iruka no Miso-ni” is a traditional, local delicacy of Izu. In the past, when dolphin meat was commonly sold at fish stores, it was served regularly in households―stir-fried with burdock roots (gobo), or perhaps other ingredients such as carrots and konnyaku (yam cake), then seasoned with sake, soy sauce, sugar, and miso, and simmered into a stew.